Your browser does not support iframes.

NEWS OF THE MORNING

No. 1:Blazers’ Williams rides emotional wave in Philly — Portland guard Mo Williams had a hand in the Trail Blazers’ 3-pointer-fueled barrage against the Philadelphia 76ers. But unlike his teammates, it wasn’t all smiles for the veteran point guard. He played with a heavy heart while dealing with the loss of a loved one. That didn’t stop him from joining the party as the Blazers made a franchise-record 21 shots from deep. On a night when LaMarcus Aldridge did his usual MVP work and Damian Lillard, Wesley Matthews, Nic Batum, Dorell Wright and rookie Allen Crabbe all took part in the 3-point party, the three 3s that Williams knocked down had extra special meaning, as Joe Freeman of The Oregonian explains:

On Dec. 5, Williams’ uncle, Jerome Coleman, died after a lengthy fight with colon cancer. He was 63. Coleman’s funeral was Saturday morning in Mobile, Ala., and Williams wasn’t about to miss the chance to say goodbye to “Uncle Roni.”

So after the Blazers’ Thursday night victory over the Houston Rockets, Williams left the Moda Center and boarded a charter flight to Mobile. He didn’t sleep a wink the entire way, touching down in Mobile at 8:30 a.m. What followed was an emotional whirlwind of consoling family, attending memorials and taking part in countless talks that reminisced about “Uncle Roni,” the older brother of Williams’ mother.

“I’m just emotionally drained,” Williams said after the game. “Time will heal. Basketball will help. But you still have those times where you just can’t let it go. Being at the funeral, holding my grandma, holding my mom, then jumping on the flight coming here. It’s been a draining day.”

The NBA allowed the Blazers to set up a charter flight for Williams so he could play Saturday, and the moment he walked into the visiting locker room — about 90 minutes before tipoff – his stress and sadness washed away. LaMarcus Aldridge cracked a joke at his expense as soon as he saw his teammate, and Williams smiled for seemingly the first time all day. Then he dove into his pregame routine.

There were no deep talks. No one asked for stories about the funeral. It was as if it was any other day. And it was exactly what Williams needed.

“That was kind of therapeutic for me, being around the guys,” he said. “Throughout the game, they didn’t beat me up with the fact that they knew I was going through something. They just treated me like they treat me every day. I needed that.”

***

No. 2:Knicks fielding calls on Shumpert and Chandler? — Kyle Lowry is low-hanging fruit, as Kobe Bryant would say, when it comes to trade talks. The Los Angeles Lakers apparently have something a bit more aggressive in mind since they are now engaging the New York Knicks in discussions about two of the teams main rotation players, the seemingly always available Iman Shumpert and defensive anchor Tyson Chandler, according to ESPN’s Chris Broussard:

No trade is imminent, and sources say the Lakers’ call was more about doing their due diligence; it’s well-known Shumpert is available. The Lakers are unlikely to make a deal before the end of their current four-game trip, which concludes Tuesday night in Memphis.

But with Steve Blake, who is expected to miss at least six weeks with an elbow injury, joining point guards Steve Nash and Jordan Farmar on the injured list, the Lakers could be interested in strengthening their backcourt.

Shumpert is more of a shooting guard, but with Bryant taking on more of a playmaking role — averaging a career-high 6.7 assists while attempting fewer than nine shots a game — since returning from a torn Achilles tendon last Sunday, it’s easy to see the two playing together.

Shumpert is struggling through a disappointing season, and the Knicks have discussed trades involving him with several other teams, including the Denver Nuggets and Toronto Raptors.

Sources say the Lakers also are interested in another Knicks player — center Tyson Chandler. The Lakers did not inquire about Chandler when they called about Shumpert, but they are weighing whether to propose a Pau Gasol-for-Chandler trade, according to sources.

The Knicks are not looking to move Chandler — several teams have contacted them about him, sources said — but if a club agreed to take back struggling guard J.R. Smith, the Knicks would consider such a deal.

And Rondo, according to Stevens, looked “pretty good.”

“Rajon is doing more and more in practice every day. He had a good trip yesterday as far as getting good news,” said the Celtics coach. “He’s on schedule to be closer, but it still seems like we’re not going to see him on the court this month. Hopefully, the beginning of January he’ll be closer.

“He’s been cleared for that in practice. He wasn’t cleared 100 percent until yesterday,” said Stevens. “But he’s done more and more, and today was the most he’s done. He looked pretty good.”

Though Stevens repeatedly has said his system is designed to fit Rondo back into the team as seamlessly as possible, the coaching staff actually has to start the implementation process.

“I haven’t thought a ton about it, because it really hasn’t presented itself,” said Stevens. “My focus is what we’re going to do on Monday, but certainly your focus is on not only getting him into it, but also how you’re going to manage everything around that.

“Certainly there’s a lot of players who play at a high level (on this team),” he said. “The key is to continue those guys playing very well, and add in another very good player.”

***

No. 4:Paul lives up to his own words for Clippers — It’s a bit early in the season for must-win declarations, but the Clippers’ Chris Paul doesn’t care. He’s mandating that his team step their collective game up and that starts with the man in the mirror. And that meant he had to prove his point against the Wizards, wearing them out to the tune of 38 points and 12 assists. He joined Clyde Drexler as the only player in the last 40 NBA seasons to post a 38 and 12 line while also shooting 78 percent or better (he was 10-for-13) from the floor. Drexler did it when Paul was barely out of diapers ((Nov. 13, 1990). But Paul’s point was made, writes Jovan Buha of ESPNLosAngeles.com, so much so that Doc Rivers shouldn’t have to come up with any fire and brimstone speeches now that the Clippers’ road trip is over:

Paul stood by his bold statement, scoring 38 points — the most since his 42-point performance on Halloween against the Golden State Warriors — on 11-of-14 shooting and dishing out 12 assists in the Clippers’ 113-97 victory at Verizon Center. He’s the first player since 2009 to go for 38-plus points, 12-plus assists and three-plus steals in a game, and he already has done it twice this season.

While Clippers coach Doc Rivers disagreed with the notion that the game was a must-win at shootaround, he admitted that going 3-4 against mainly sub-.500 Eastern Conference teams would be a major disappointment at any point in the season.

“I think they’re a little frustrated on this trip,” Rivers told reporters. “They think it should have gone better. It still can go well. If you win this game, 4-3 on a seven-game trip — that’s good. It’s not what we wanted. We want to win all seven of them. But you just keep plugging along.”

With the win, the Clippers finished the trip above .500 at 4-3 and are now 16-9. That isn’t necessarily where they expected to be at this point in the season, but at the very least Saturday’s win showed that if they need to win a tough road game to ease their mental psyche, they can.

December 10, 2013 · 11:08AM

Your browser does not support iframes.

VIDEO:Mike Fratello breaks down the hole in the middle of the Knicks’ defenseHANG TIME HEADQUARTERS – A quick review of the injuries and roster make-up of the New York Knicks reveals exactly what ails this team this season. Not only are they missing their defensive heart and soul in Tyson Chandler, but even when he’s in the lineup, the pieces don’t exactly fit.

Their latest disastrous outing, Sunday’s 114-73 blowout loss to the Boston Celtics, only served to accentuate the faulty chemistry of the group Knicks coach Mike Woodson is trying to poke and push into playing the “right way.” Even Woodson’s best-laid plans haven’t produced the desired results.

“Every day that I come to work, I work,” said Woodson, who repeatedly said how privileged he is to be Knicks coach. “I don’t take days off. I put my time in, I think my preparation is great with my staff. And we try to get our guys to play at a high level.”

“Unfortunately, we haven’t had a lot of the pieces,” Woodson continued of injuries to his squad. “I thought I got to a rotation in those two games with Brooklyn and Orlando which I felt was good, but got to the arena and Kenyon [Martin] couldn’t go … For me, it has kind of been a work in progress. I think I am up for the task.”

And I can vouch for him on that one. He’s endured nightmare stretches before in his coaching career. His first season as an NBA oach in Atlanta, his team was a league-worst 13-69. It was a miserable season on paper and in reality, one that left everyone — the players, coaches, fans and the entire city — with a bad taste in their mouths.

But Woodson fought off the drama and endless twists and turns of his brutal start to help the Hawks become the playoff regular they are today. It took a series of roster tweaks, however, to aid that cause. And it took time for the Hawks to assemble the right crew to help dig out of that initial sinkhole.

Despite the through-the-roof price tag, I’m not convinced he has the pieces in place to work similar magic this season in New York. Sure, it looks workable on paper. Shouldn’t any coach be able to win with Carmelo Anthony, Chandler (when he returns) J.R. Smith, Raymond Felton, Andrea Bargnani, Metta World Peace, Amar’e Stoudemire, Martin, Iman Shumpert, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Pablo Prigioni as the core group?

Not when your only true two-way players are Chandler and Shumpert. And certainly not when two of your key components — Anthony and Bargnani, who has served admirably as the fill-in for Chandler — are absolutely brutal defensively when they’re on the floor together.

+51

Neither

130

91.0

102.4

115.8

-13.4

-30

Not many coaches could whiteboard their way out of those dire numbers, not even one with Woodson’s years of experience and track record of turning a foul situation around.

Still, Woodson remains steadfast in his belief that he can grind away and eventually figure a way out of this mess:

“At the end of the day, the players are playing, but I’m still coaching the team,” Woodson said. “I’ve always had the responsibility as the coach to make sure guys are playing at a high level. We’ve done that for the most part since I’ve been here. We’ve had our lapses since I’ve been here.

“I’m still the head coach,” Woodson continued. “And I’m still going to push guys to play at a high level. Players have got to do their part as well. We can’t have games like that. That’s no fun for anybody.”

Woodson is right about at least one thing: the players indeed have to do their part. And so far, they have fallen down on the job in spectacular fashion.

Nets boss Billy King is going in a radical direction by even pursuing Kidd, whose brilliant playing career included a championship in Dallas in 2011 and back-to-back trips to The Finals with the Nets a decade ago. Kidd’s lack of coaching experience is offset by 19 years of playing in the league, many of those as one of the top point guards in the game.

How Kidd fills his staff out will also be of significant intrigue. A source confirmed to NBA.com this afternoon that former Nets and Detroit Pistons coach Lawrence Frank is expected to be a part of Kidd’s staff, potentially as his lead assistant. Frank coached Kidd from 2003-04 to the trade deadline of the 2007-08 season, when Kidd was dealt to Dallas.

The Nets were considering a long list of candidates for their vacancy, including Pacers assistant Brian Shaw and recently fired Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins.Both men remain candidates for the open job with the Los Angeles Clippers. Kidd rising to the top of the Nets’ list in such short order is a development few saw coming, especially on the heels of his retirement announcement last week.

Perhaps the most interesting wrinkle of this entire affair, though, is what impact Kidd’s hiring will have on the current face of the franchise: veteran point guard Deron Williams. An All-Star and Olympic gold medalist, Williams and Kidd already have a relationship from their playing days. How they work together will likely determine the immediate on-court fortunes of the franchise.

May 6, 2013 · 3:28PM

Your browser does not support iframes.

HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS – The sting of blowing a Game 7 on their home floor will linger for a while in Brooklyn. There is no way to dress up that debacle.

A new coach, though, one with a high profile and Hall of Fame credentials, is a good place to start. And from all indications the Nets are setting their sights high. Phil Jackson, Jerry Sloan, Jeff or Stan Van Gundy and even Larry Brown‘s name has been mentioned by a few league executives who are watching the Nets and waiting to see where they go next.

What makes the Nets search for a replacement for the replacement is that Sloan, who coached with and clashed, at times, with Nets star Deron Williams in Utah, is on the list of candidates to fill the job.

Much like the other candidates on the Nets’ list, Sloan’s name tends to come up whenever there is an opening. This Nets opening, however, appeals to him. He said as much to Chris Haynes of CSNNW.com:

“I’m open, I would listen,” Sloan told CSNNW.com via phone. “I haven’t done the research on their roster, but I would definitely listen if they called.”

Already linked to the Milwaukee Bucks Head Coaching gig, Sloan admits he’s interested in getting back to roaming the sidelines, but only under the right circumstances and conditions.

“According to reports, I’m interested in every job that’s out there,” Sloan said. “That’s just not the case. I don’t like being linked to every opening. If the right situation presented itself, I will look into it.”

Sloan dropping his John Deere cap and days spent on his tractor for the sideline in Brooklyn has movie of the week potential. But any team could use his wisdom and guidance, provided the players on the roster are willing to listen.

The Nets won’t have the flexibility to tinker with their roster this summer, so the most significant change they’ll make will be in the coaching ranks. There is also a temperament change that is needed, one highlighted by many in the immediate aftermath of that lackadaisical Game 7 effort.

Williams has his own ideas about what the Nets need in a new coach and it’s all about someone who demands his team play with the intestinal fortitude to win a Game 7 on their home floor in the playoffs, based on what he told Mike Mazzeo of ESPNNewYork.com:

Williams was asked what quality the Nets need more of.

“Toughness,” he replied. “I think that’s what we’ve used a lot. Toughness. I think we got out-toughed in that last series, especially [Saturday], so I think that’s the main thing.”

Williams thinks a coach like his former one in Utah, Jerry Sloan, could get toughness out of his players.

“When I played for Coach Sloan, I think he had that effect — just the way he coaches and the way he talked to us every day and the way he prepared us for games kind of rubbed off,” Williams said.

Would Williams want to play for Sloan again?

“I would love to,” he replied.

And Phil Jackson?

“Who wouldn’t want to play for Phil Jackson?” he replied.

Regardless, Williams believes the team’s next coach needs to be experienced.

“Yeah, I think so. I think somebody that’s creative on offense and has a good system on defense,” he said. “I haven’t really thought much about it. I think we just need somebody that’s going to lead us, somebody everybody respects for sure; it’s tough.”

December 3, 2012 · 10:11AM

HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS – When Rasheed Wallace talks, referees listen.

It’s been that way throughout Wallace’s basketball career, dating back to his fouling out of and then being ejected from the 1993 McDonald’s All-American game at the Mid-South Coliseum in Memphis (I know I’m dating myself a bit here, but I was in attendance that day).

Wallace continued his decades-old tradition Sunday in the New York Knicks’ win over the Phoenix Suns when he headed to the showers early after being ejected in the first quarter. But not everyone is convinced that he earned this latest ejection, as both Tyson Chandler and Carmelo Anthony told ESPNNewYork.com that his reputation earned him an early exit:

“I think so. He’s the only guy in the league that gets technicals for saying, ‘ball don’t lie,’ so that should go to show you right there,” Tyson Chandler said.

Wallace picked up career technical fouls 316 and 317 late in the first quarter on Sunday for arguing a foul call.

He played just 1 minute, 25 seconds in the game, the quickest ejection of his 15-year career, according to Elias.

Wallace appeared to argue with officials after he was whistled for a foul on Phoenix forward Luis Scola.

He then apparently yelled “ball don’t lie” after Goran Dragic missed his technical free throw and was ejected.

Wallace, 38, continued to argue with officials as he walked off the court flanked by security.

“I didn’t think it was that much for him to get kicked out,” Carmelo Anthony said. “He needs to trademark ‘ball don’t lie’ though. I tell you that.”

Wallace has been ejected 30 times, according to STATS, LLC, 26 times in the regular season.

On the season, Wallace has four technical fouls, one behind Anthony and Demarcus Cousins, who entered play Sunday tied for the league lead with five.

You can judge for yourself if Wallace’s latest ejection was real or based on his reputation. He is guilty as charged, for hollering after the missed free throw, but is that worth another technical and an ejection?

October 29, 2012 · 11:45AM

Your browser does not support iframes.

HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS – We’ve been watching that countdown to tipoff clock on the front of NBA.com for days, weeks even, just staring at the numbers ticking away.

With the ground beneath our feet seemingly changing by the second in the final days leading up to Tuesday night’s start of the regular season, the one constant we thought we could be sure of is the teams that make up the league’s 1 percent.

But we’re not completely sure how to rank the elite now that James Harden and Jeremy Lin will share a backcourt in Houston after Oklahoma City Thunder traded the reigning KIA Sixth Man of the Year to the Rockets Saturday night. It was the most shocking and final blow in a week that left us punch drunk from stunning (some more than others) news.

The balance of power hasn’t been shifted or anything. We all know that the Miami Heat, Thunder, Los Angeles Lakers, San Antonio Spurs and Boston Celtics make up the theoretical 1 percent. They’ll all kick this season off in the same positions in which they finished the last one.

Sure, it was a drama-filled last week before the start of the regular season. From the news that NBA Commissioner David Stern would be stepping down on Feb. 1, 2014 after 30 years on the job, and will be succeeded by Deputy Commissioner Adam Silver, to the weekend stunner from Oklahoma City, the hits just kept coming.

On the eve of one of the most anticipated seasons we can remember, so much seems to be in flux.

October 25, 2012 · 11:24AM

Your browser does not support iframes.

HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS –Kobe Bryant, Andrew Bynum, Amar’e Stoudemire the list of names on the NBA’s walking wounded list is growing by the day.

Add New York Knicks center Tyson Chandler to that group of players whose availability for his team’s regular season opener next week is in doubt.

A collision with Gerald Wallace in the Knicks’ win over the Brooklyn Nets last night left Chandler on crutches after the game and in need of an MRI today to determine the severity of his injury. More from Ian Begley from ESPNNewYork.comon Chandler’s injury and the mounting injury issues the Knicks are facing right now:

“It was awkward,” Chandler said. “My foot was planted when he fell into me. It just torqued my knee outside a little bit. I kind of didn’t feel it until I started laying there.”

The team originally said Chandler’s injury was minor and he was held out of the game as a precaution.

If Chandler’s out for an extended period, it leaves a huge void for New York on the defensive end. Chandler, the reigning defensive player of the year, helped transform the Knicks into a top-10 defensive team last season, his first in New York.

September 14, 2012 · 8:06AM

Your browser does not support iframes.

HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS – If there’s going to be a big man renaissance in New York this season, it will come with a huge assist from one of the all-time great big men in the history of the game.

Knicks coach Mike Woodson, a former teammate of Hakeem Olajuwon‘s, approached the two-time NBA champ about tutoring members of his frontcourt rotation as preparation for the 2012-13 season.

Amar’e Stoudemire, who worked with Olajuwon earlier this summer (above), Tyson Chandler and Marcus Camby will all get a chance to learn from a master. Olajuwon normally tutors big men, but he’s also going to work with Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony, according to Chris Broussard of ESPN.com.

Having Olajuwon school his guys on post moves and the art of winning at the highest level is a masterstroke by Woodson, who knows that the key for the Knicks this season will be finding the right fit between his biggest stars. It’s an understanding that Olajuwon already seems locked in on as well, per the report from Broussard:

“They both have to realize that the most important thing is not how great you are individually,” Olajuwon said. “You’re remembered for how many games you win. So to get to play with another great offensive player should help you. It should make your job easier. You have to work well together. You can’t be competitors with one another.”

While Olajuwon has taught Stoudemire back-to-the-basket post moves, he said the Knicks’ game plan should not be simply to post up Stoudemire while Anthony dominates the perimeter.

“It shouldn’t be Amar’e just staying in the post because he can be a scorer in the paint and outside,” Olajuwon said. “It’s the same thing for Carmelo. He can score in the post and outside. So if Carmelo is in the post, Amar’e can be at the foul line and he can make that shot. If Amare’s in the post, Carmelo can make the shot from the free-throw line, too. They shouldn’t be competing against each other; they should be complementing each other. They need each other to win.”

July 4, 2012 · 12:48PM

Your browser does not support iframes.

HANG TIME HEADQUARTERS – We’ve had our fun at his expense in the past.

In Philadelphia, when he bet on guys that didn’t end up living up to the hype, he was roasted. His predecessor, Rod Thorn, chased superstars LeBron James and Chris Bosh, only to come up empty. King continued the futility after Thorn helped the Nets hire him as his replacement, chasing Carmelo Anthony and others only to come up empty, and get roasted once again by those of us paid to grade such things.

But while you’re preparing your holiday feast and celebrating the nation’s birthday this afternoon and night, you need to toast Brooklyn Nets general manager Billy King.

He is the picture of perseverance on this day, a testament to the power of positive thinking and the model for ambitious NBA executives for refusing to accept defeat (and yes, it certainly helps to have a billionaire owner like Mikhail Prokhorov willing to take the risks to build a winner).

King’s calculations when he traded for Williams have paid off handsomely. If he’s somehow able to pull off the trade for Dwight Howard, which is still a longshot, he’ll be the early leader to succeed Larry Bird as the NBA’s Executive of the Year. The fact that Howard has made a trade demand with the desired destinations list of only the Nets is another feather for King’s hat.

May 21, 2012 · 12:55PM

Your browser does not support iframes.

HANG TIME PLAYOFF HEADQUARTERS — No one said Linsanity would last forever.

But one-and-done in New York for Jeremy Lin?

Apparently there are no guarantees that Knicks fans will get an encore performance from the mercurial point guard who took the NBA, and the global basketball world, by storm this season when he burst onto the scene.

Lin will be a restricted free agent this summer and according to his agent, Roger Montgomery, is not necessarily destined to sign with the Knicks, courtesy of the New York Post:

“I don’t expect that. We’re not anticipating that’s going to happen. We don’t have assurances of anything. I know history shows most restricted free agents go back to their team, but I’m not going to assume anything. We’re waiting to see what happens.”

Surely, those aren’t the words Knicks fans want to hear. Not after Knicks coach Mike Woodson declared at season’s end that Lin would be back. And certainly not after seeing the impact Lin had on their team when he was healthy, after helping them revive their season only to miss the playoffs with an injury.